Court upholds $319M verdict in Millionaire' case

FILE - In this 2008 photo provided by Disney-ABC Domestic Television, Lyndsay Baldwin from Cos Cob, CT feels the pressure as the clock winds down to just one second on her "Millionaire" question in New York. A federal appeals court on Monday Dec. 3, 2012 upheld a $319 million verdict awarded to a British company that claimed Walt Disney Co. engaged in creative accounting to hide profits from the popular game show, "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." (AP Photo/Disney-ABC Domestic Television)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A federal appeals court has upheld a $319 million verdict over profits from the game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” and has rejected a request by Walt Disney Co. for a new trial.

A jury decided in 2010 that Disney hid the show’s profits from its creators, London-based Celador International.

The ruling Monday by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found no issues with the verdict. It also determined there were no issues with the judge’s rulings in the case.

Celador Chairman Paul Smith praised the ruling in a statement. Disney did not immediately comment.

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Celador filed the lawsuit in 2004, and the judgment was entered after a trial that featured testimony from top Disney executives.